“Kaharu, Let’s create a temporary alliance”

Kosuto uttered the words with utmost sincerity, as Kaharu stared back in silence. Kosuto continued

“It’s not like I want to cooperate with you, I’d rather be on the opposite side to you. Usually, that is. But this situation is different, someone wants to control everybody at school. I don’t really care about the others, but even my comrades are under this spell. I don’t want to let the rest of their school days be spent in a pretend trance.

Unforgivable bastard…!

That’s why I’ll join your side, for this time only Kaharu.”

Kosuto also had another person in mind, that he didn’t mention, as he said it. He drank a cup of water as he awaited some sort of response from his blonde, navy-blue pants-wearing rival.

What filled up Kaharu’s mind were thoughts about Kosuto’s power, he didn’t really mind cooperating with Kosuto for this operation, as he agreed with Kosuto’s general sentiment. That ghost-like thing was strange, it had a very cartoony appearance to it, yet it still carried the aura of a serious threat. Kaharu asked

“That ghost I saw before, and the fact you’re sentient. Don’t tell me… you’re a god candidate as well?”

Kosuto took another sip of the water as a general reluctance to answer the question, telling anyone about his powers was a gamble in itself. Especially Kaharu Kahari. But he took a relaxed stance to it as they were going to work together either way, so revealing that information would be necessary. He could reclaim that lost ground by asking what Kaharu’s powers were in return, to even out the playing field. Kosuto didn’t want to be the one in front of that terrifying hill, Kaharu standing on top with an upper hand. Kosuto said

“Well… yeah. I went to pray for my mother’s health a couple of weeks ago when the diety there approached me. I---”

Kosuto caught himself in his speech, he was about to reveal a personal feeling about the situation. That it was scary to be approached by a ghost all of the sudden, but such vulnerability would only leave him open. What he revealed before about his family situation was so normal for him, as he’d told most people who asked, that he wouldn’t have cared at all if Kaharu cracked smug comments about it that much, but his feelings about being approached at a shrine were completely new. It wasn’t like he’d ever had the opportunity to talk about them with anybody else, so those feelings were sealed within him. That hill wouldn’t get higher, at any cost.

Kaharu nodded slowly as he said

“It’s scary, isn’t it? Suddenly being approached by some weird transparent geezer. Although I thought it was more annoying than scary, to be honest.”

All of a sudden, the view of a wide ocean with a lingering afternoon sun flashing it was visible from Kosuto’s perspective. He noticed the wide horizon that filled itself with far-away mountains that grazed the soaring clouds in the sky.

His own hill had grown.

Looking down from it, an artificially blond delinquent could be seen with a slight frown weighing his face.

His own promise to not let that hill grow had technically been broken as his hill had been the one to pierce the sky. But it was only then he realized the potential consequence of having such an upper hand, and being so high up in the sky. Falling down from that would be devastating, unable to recover from.

Kosuto realized that as he finished his water quickly like he had to hurry for something. Without Kaharu having to ask, Kosuto yielded the lingering secret about his powers

“I have the ability to send out these ghosts to ‘protect’ someone. They use their powers to protect from physical dangers, from what I’ve seen. I could probably summon as many as I want, but they get weaker for each new one I dispatch. I must also know who they are, and have seen them to attach one to them.”

“I see, how many do you have out right now?”

“Five”

Kaharu stole a glance at the picture frame, now laying flat on the table in front of Kosuto, as he counted the people in the picture.

“Three siblings, and one mother. But that only makes up 4, who’s the last one on?”

Kosuto instantly got flustered as he stumbled on his words in a quick rejection

“S-Shut up! No one.”

Kaharu just thought to himself

- Maybe the one he deployed for me earlier is still technically in the field, or he has one on himself or something. Although I don’t see it near him. Whatever. -

After some more time discussing other things, such as a plan and the powers Kaharu had, Kosuto stood up and grabbed a jacket, he said

“Well you’ve gotta go, I have to leave for a job now.”

Finally being able to see Kaharu on an equal level, both of their hills leveling each other, he saw into the eyes of his long-time rival and the hazel colored eyes that contained much more than he’d imagined in his head. Maybe he’d reached a new understanding of his enemy, maybe he imagined that depth as a substitute for his lack of understanding.

Maybe his learning of his rival only made him realize that there was so much more he didn’t know about those hazel, slightly distant, eyes belonging to a shunned soul.

Kosuto shook the thought as a bridge was created between their hills, he reached out his hand slowly as he said

“Let’s seal this temporary alliance with a handshake, then.”

Kaharu also stood up and moved towards Kosuto. He reached out his hand, but did not grab Kosuto’s, instead, he reached his pinky finger out and hooked it around Kosuto’s. He stared into Kosuto’s eyes with a subtle smile as he said

“I like pinky promises more, they’re more reliable.”

Kosuto accepted it as he commented

“Like there’s any difference idiot, don’t think we’re comrades now”

“Obviously not”

…

Akumu High School’s building shone brightly in the afternoon sun, but that flare had started to subside as the seasons went on. It would soon be covered in a darker shade as autumn continued and progressed into winter. Inside that building, in the center of authority, the principle’s office, Amatsuyu Kougaku sat with reflections of the day in his mind. He was already pissed over not being able to quell the flames of Kaharu for the last time, even in his last moments did he not show any power. But he had witnessed another contender as Kosuto had entered the scene, but his powers had been shown clearly to him. Amatsuyu had already had enough to time to calm his anger down to think about it properly, he thought

- Maybe, because they’re presumably god candidates as well, they’re not in the same trance as everybody else, but I’m able to control them if I give some sort of command to them. I found out that you aren’t able to directly order people to hit themselves, so…

I know…! -

Morale was restored to Amatsuyu’s clouded brain as he moved from his seat in the principal’s office: a bent over principal that had to serve as a chair.

He ran towards the broadcasting room again as he wanted to enact his idea.

Amatsuyu didn’t realize it directly himself, but that could’ve been his last stand. A subtle notion in him told him that he’d tried so much against the opponent, yet nothing had made them fall yet. His upper hand had been exploited, yet the substantial progress he wanted couldn’t be met.

Planted inside of his mind was a seed of doubt that would nurture into an obstacle if no progress would be made. Even a reminder of his status as a God didn’t reinstate a calm into him as much as before, a subtle stress started building up inside of him.

He continued to hatch his plan as that seed confirmed its position.

…

All three participants of the informal war of control over Akumu High School had things weighing on their minds that night that followed a lethal encounter. It wasn’t easy to fall asleep during that star-filled sky and their abilities were all questioned as they tried to ease their minds. Was that the responsibility that weighed over leaders in a confrontation? As the other students, unknowingly controlled by another part, went about their days as they usually would, spending their time with fun as the objective, it showed a clear difference between them and the delinquents named Kaharu Kahari, Kosuto Kokoru, and Amatsuyu Kougaku.

The stars twinkled extra that night, maybe trying to say something, maybe by coincidence. But either way, it wasn’t noticed by anyone in particular. Tunnel-vision filled their eyesights.

…

~Friday, the eighteenth of October, 7:55 ~

Standing in front of those gates once again, Kaharu smiled as he rummaged around in his school-uniform pocket. Taking a step forward, he said

“Let’s do this”

…